On the other end of the line, Pauline Martin is returning from a grueling day spent in Corsica. With her sing-song accent, straight from the Tarn, the first recruit of Quimper Volley describes being in the mountains of the Île-de-beauté. She is taking part in a sports raid with her sister. Kayaking, swimming, trail running… she has never really practiced. But the volleyball player is a woman of challenges. She already proved it to herself when she dropped everything six years ago to go and play in another country, far from her family that she loves so much.
A career focused abroad
Pauline Martin began her volleyball journey when she could neither read nor write, at the age of six. Motivated by the idea of following in her older sister’s footsteps. “I did gymnastics and I wanted to move towards a more team sport,” she recalls. Since then, she has never stopped. Before finding her place on the field, she tried several positions. Some were naturally set aside: “I played in attack but I had to quickly change positions given my height (1.70 m), it was a bit complicated,” Pauline Martin sums up with a smile. She will therefore be a setter.
With her career underway, Pauline Martin navigates between the French and foreign championships. The main points: Béziers (2013 to 2018), Finland (2018-2019), Istres Provence (2019-2022), Portugal (2022-2023) and then Hungary last season. Was going abroad a necessity? “I don’t know,” admits the young woman. I could have played in the elite after Béziers but I had an opportunity in Finland. I told myself that it was now or never.”
So at 23, here she is far from the family cocoon that she never really left. “I have always been very close to my family. Leaving allowed me to gain maturity, to see things differently”. Sportingly, the setter has not wasted her time either. “Even if there are not many differences with France, it brought me a new way of training and different experiences”. She lists: the “physical” aspect with the Hungarians or the “technique” in Portugal.
Back to the sources
But all this will not compensate for the lack of her loved ones. “I told myself that I no longer wanted to be far from them, that I wanted to return to my country. It was important for my mental strength,” she admits. By signing in Quimper, Pauline Martin validates a first step before returning to Albi where she is from.
In the meantime, the setter hopes to continue to progress with and above all this desire to pass on the experience gleaned in Europe. In which division? That is the big question. But no matter, “if we are in League A, it is a bonus and we will do our utmost to ensure survival. If it is in Elite, we will play for promotion and that is also a great objective”, assures the future Quimper player. But in the meantime, Pauline Martin has a reunion to enjoy and a sports raid to complete.
